About Sacred Heart · Mercedes, Texas
Sacred Heart Catholic Church is a bilingual Roman Catholic parish located at 920 Anacuitas Street in Mercedes, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley. It belongs to the Diocese of Brownsville, whose cathedral-pastoral territory covers the four southernmost counties of Texas (Cameron, Willacy, Hidalgo, and Starr). Sacred Heart was established in 1969 after having been a mission of the neighboring Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church in Mercedes, and it has grown into a community of faith serving the predominantly Spanish-speaking population of the city. The parish offers Mass in both Spanish and English, with a bilingual schedule that reflects the bicultural character of the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
- Established
- 1969
- Patron
- Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Rector
- Rev. Jose Rene Angel, J.C.L.
- Diocese
- Diocese of Brownsville
Why belong here
Sacred Heart is a long-established bilingual Catholic parish (founded 1969) that serves Mercedes with a full Sunday Mass schedule in Spanish and English, a bilingual Tuesday/Friday evening Mass, and Saturday confession — making it easy for working families on both sides of the language line to participate fully in the sacramental life of the Church. As a parish of the Diocese of Brownsville, it connects local Catholics to the wider life of the Rio Grande Valley Church while offering the kind of close-knit, neighborhood parish community that has defined Mercedes for generations.
Mass times at Sacred Heart
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:00 PM (per Diocese of Brownsville parish listing)
About Sacred Heart Parish
Sacred Heart Catholic Church is a bilingual Roman Catholic parish of the Diocese of Brownsville located at 920 Anacuitas Street in Mercedes, Texas, in the heart of the Lower Rio Grande Valley. The parish was established in 1969 after having been served for years as a mission of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, also in Mercedes. The parish's own website greets visitors in both English and Spanish and invites newcomers and parishioners alike to use the site to learn about the community's life of faith. Sacred Heart sits within a diocese that covers Cameron, Willacy, Hidalgo and Starr Counties and serves more than a million Catholics in 72 parishes and 44 missions.
- Parish established: 1969
- Previously a mission of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, Mercedes
- Diocese of Brownsville (erected 1965)
Parish History & Founding
Sacred Heart was canonically erected as a parish of the Diocese of Brownsville in 1969, according to the diocese's official parish finder and its historical timeline. Its birth came during a period of rapid Catholic growth in the Rio Grande Valley: the diocese's own timeline lists Sacred Heart alongside three other 1969 foundations — San Martin de Porres in Weslaco, Holy Spirit in Progreso, and Our Lady of St. John of the Fields in Mission. Before becoming its own parish, the Catholic community that would become Sacred Heart was ministered to as a mission of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church in Mercedes. The parish has continued to serve the people of Mercedes in both Spanish and English for more than five decades.
- 1969 — Sacred Heart Parish established in Mercedes (Diocese of Brownsville timeline)
- Originally a mission of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, Mercedes
- 1969 co-foundations in the diocese: San Martin de Porres (Weslaco), Holy Spirit (Progreso), Our Lady of St. John of the Fields (Mission)
Clergy & Leadership
According to the Diocese of Brownsville parish directory, Sacred Heart is currently served by Rev. Jose Rene Angel, J.C.L., as pastor (effective March 6, 2023), and Rev. Felix A. Cazares as parochial vicar (effective July 16, 2022). The parish office can be reached at (956) 565-0271 with fax (956) 565-0272, and the official parish email is [email protected].
- Rev. Jose Rene Angel, J.C.L. — Pastor (effective 03/06/2023)
- Rev. Felix A. Cazares — Parochial Vicar (effective 07/16/2022)
- Office: (956) 565-0271 · Fax: (956) 565-0272 · Email: [email protected]
Parish Mission
The parish website features a brief mission statement under the heading 'HEART PARISH MISSION' that references Pope Francis's call to 'Feed them,' tying the parish's identity to the Gospel call to feed God's people and to its name — the Sacred Heart of Jesus — as the wellspring of its community life.
- References Pope Francis's call to 'Feed them'
- Mission statement framed around the parish's name, Sacred Heart of Jesus
Visiting Mercedes & the Rio Grande Valley
Sacred Heart is located on Anacuitas Street in Mercedes, a small city in Hidalgo County in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of deep South Texas. The parish belongs to the Diocese of Brownsville, whose territory also includes Brownsville, McAllen, Edinburg, Harlingen, Mission, Weslaco and other Valley communities. The diocese's cathedral is the Immaculate Conception Church in Brownsville, and its current ordinary is Bishop Daniel E. Flores, installed February 2, 2010.
- City: Mercedes, Hidalgo County, Texas
- Diocese: Brownsville (Bishop Daniel E. Flores, installed 2010)
- Parish telephone: (956) 565-0271
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Jose Rene Angel, J.C.L.effective 03/06/2023 – present
Current pastor per the Diocese of Brownsville parish finder.
- Rev. Felix A. Cazareseffective 07/16/2022 – present
Parochial vicar per the Diocese of Brownsville parish finder.
- Rev. Eduardo Ortega
Listed as pastor on third-party aggregator sites; superseded by current diocesan directory.